tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post7927969731958229037..comments2024-03-05T01:07:08.127-08:00Comments on Sweet Rocket: Angel and WolfySusanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03880145777347900626noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-36057630216958290812009-07-01T19:13:44.313-07:002009-07-01T19:13:44.313-07:00Susan,
I know how hard it is to tell if they are ...Susan,<br /><br />I know how hard it is to tell if they are "ready". I wasn't sure about Kermit and I can't help thinking I took her to the vet too soon. Maybe I just think that because I miss her so much, but deadness is so permanent.crystalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05681674503952991492noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-74297532482283115832009-07-01T14:08:51.295-07:002009-07-01T14:08:51.295-07:00If only dogs could talk! Well, I should amend that...If only dogs could talk! Well, I should amend that to: If only dogs could talk <i>sometimes</i>. Like when they're sick. Or if something hurts. Not when they're bored or annoyed with us.<br /><br />I've been watching Angel very closely, and I really don't think she's suffering. I'll keep watching.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03880145777347900626noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-47205588054742243672009-07-01T13:36:24.127-07:002009-07-01T13:36:24.127-07:00I do feel for you Susan. I haven't had to make...I do feel for you Susan. I haven't had to make such a decision yet, but I've watched my mother keep a cat or dog alive longer than I think she should have and longer than I could bear to watch. Of course, who ever truly knows when that time has arrived? But I think if Angel is suffering it may be time to let go.<br /><br />Hugs to you.Helenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03804382963910285639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-82497119204807317632009-06-28T20:24:47.606-07:002009-06-28T20:24:47.606-07:00Hi Helen, thanks for asking. I was just thinking a...Hi Helen, thanks for asking. I was just thinking about this situation. (Ha--the truth is I could say that at any waking hour.) Since I posted this entry, Wolfy has stopped displaying anxiety at night. This is a huge improvement, as you can imagine. But Angel's panting and pacing have increased, and I'm concerned. <br /><br />I actually made an appointment to have her put down last week, and I came <i>this</i> close to keeping it. But I canceled at the last minute. (I'd never done that before.) At the time, I was convinced she wasn't ready (when it came time to leave she jumped off the porch like a puppy), but now I'm not so sure.<br /><br />MM suggested that I might not be picking up signs of readiness, and I'm taking her suggestion seriously. Another friend said, "We owe them good days," and I'm keeping that in mind, too.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03880145777347900626noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-23686127515143178322009-06-28T16:59:10.428-07:002009-06-28T16:59:10.428-07:00How are things going Susan?How are things going Susan?Helenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03804382963910285639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-26488807788817919322009-06-10T06:54:39.840-07:002009-06-10T06:54:39.840-07:00Hi, I found your blog because I was looking up Swe...Hi, I found your blog because I was looking up Sweet Rocket. I'm going to be writing a post about it shortly. (I love them too.)<br /><br />So much of what you wrote about your dogs reminds me of Lady, who lived to be 16 1/2. She was deaf, losing her teeth, had cataracts, and was incontient. It was very, very hard to come home to, but she was still happy and had an appetite and was not in pain. As you said, it was my pain, not her pain. When the day came that she could not use her hind legs, we took her in to the vet and said our goodbyes. My friends were appalled that I put up with this, but Lady gave us 16 1/2 years of unconditional love and I wouldn't put her to sleep just for incontience. You'll know when the time is right to let them go - we did with two other dogs as well: Brandy, 14, and Beau, 14 1/2.Juliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17693598787241469220noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-11892271054033043732009-06-08T13:02:10.960-07:002009-06-08T13:02:10.960-07:00My daughter, at 22, said at the death of Keeley, a...My daughter, at 22, said at the death of Keeley, a long-lived border collie, "It's just not right. man's best friend should live longer. Why should we lose our best friends over and over and over?"<br /><br />In her office "puts dogs down" when the time has come. That time is when the dog is suffering. But, she tells me, they don't experience pain the way we do. Sensation, yes, but, a thorn in the foot and the dog lifts the leg and goes on. Arthritis, she tells me, is similar. It just is. Live on.<br /><br />But she can tell when the suffering has started.<br /><br />My dog will be three this January. A dingo. She may live a long time. Sometimes I wonder what I will do when that time has ended. I try not to let it colour the present. Sometimes, though, I can't help it. And then we go for a walk.Adam Byrn "Adamus" Tritthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03146942018135434361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-52018365081711640972009-06-05T11:42:20.561-07:002009-06-05T11:42:20.561-07:00Susan -- there's not much I can add to what th...Susan -- there's not much I can add to what the others have said here. It is such a difficult decision and whatever you do there are reasons for doing the opposite. And your decisions are compounded in that Wolfy and Angel are a connection to Jill.<br /><br />It is good you have a vet that supports you.<br /><br />Your dogs are beautiful.Donahttp://dponline.org/weblognoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-4743306747964768172009-06-05T02:53:38.233-07:002009-06-05T02:53:38.233-07:00Susan, I'm in tears having just read this. My...Susan, I'm in tears having just read this. My cats are both 16, and having the same problems. Or should I say I'm having the same problems coping with their changed behaviour and neediness (and Cleo meows loudly at night so maybe I now know why), and wondering how selfish I must be to consider their end. But one of the things I hated about my first few days from our holiday was dealing with them - I wanted to leave them safe and cared for at the cat home. And I am annoyed with myself,and now feel even more selfish, because I can't imagine how you feel about you dogs, given their connection with Jill.Malihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03928262526502319303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-3249107887775076212009-06-04T18:03:28.728-07:002009-06-04T18:03:28.728-07:00We had a hard time when it was time for Curly to b...We had a hard time when it was time for Curly to be allowed to go. He was never incontinent or confused, but he began to suffer despite his meds. He was a great communicator, and could indicate when he needed the ceiling fan turned on so he could breathe better. <br /><br />Now we have a cat who found us, and a 6 months old puppy who came from the same line as Curly. It took time to ever begin to think about another pet. <br /><br />I'll think of you often while you go through yet another painful time. Your animals are so fortunate to have someone who cares so much.Jean Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-16881905824539677112009-06-04T09:15:54.711-07:002009-06-04T09:15:54.711-07:00Thank you, everyone. I considered writing about th...Thank you, everyone. I considered writing about this situation earlier, and rejected it several times. But then I felt I had to; it's on my mind all the time.<br /><br />Our last vet believed in keeping animals alive no matter what. My sweet cat, Nocci, had mouth cancer, and when I finally brought her in to be put down I honestly couldn't tell if she was dead or alive. I'm standing there thinking, <i>I will <b>never</b> do this to another animal,</i> and the vet is standing there praising me for keeping her going so long.<br /><br />My present vet will understand no matter what I do. My kids think it's time.....my daughter knows what's happening to the 1850 house I put so much thought into remodeling six years ago. And my son is the occasional recipient of 3:00 a.m. emails. I'm sure he doesn't like to think of his mother as deranged. But the decision is, of course, up to me.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03880145777347900626noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-2563900580151851592009-06-04T09:13:03.343-07:002009-06-04T09:13:03.343-07:00This post is quite heart-breaking. Animals are nev...This post is quite heart-breaking. Animals are never "just a (insert species here)" are they? I so understand how torn you must be, and exhausted by what you have to do and what you sometimes think of doing. Whatever decision you make it won't be a bad one(I don't actually believe that bad decisions exist). Hugs to you...<br /><br />PS Angel and Wolfy are beautiful.Helenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03804382963910285639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-53446999265991242222009-06-04T05:39:43.417-07:002009-06-04T05:39:43.417-07:00It's taken me a couple of days to be able to c...It's taken me a couple of days to be able to comment on this sad, sad post.<br /><br />You have done more than anybody could expect for these two wonderful dogs. But you also have a responsibility to yourself...easier said than done, I know. But as I write I'm thinking of my own 11-year-old Lexi, whose body is quickly deteriorating from arthritis.<br /><br />I hope you have a good, kind, sensitive vet to help you think through all this.Eulalia Benejam Cobbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13247079657985430691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-66529943617981741732009-06-03T09:06:12.092-07:002009-06-03T09:06:12.092-07:00Oh, Susan, this is so hard. You're hitting on ...Oh, Susan, this is so hard. You're hitting on some of the reasons I don't have pets with this post...how attached I would get and couldn't deal with end-of-life scenarios, plus the reality of my own selfishness and NEEDS. I appreciate the honesty of your post and hope that things get better, whatever that means.Indigo Buntinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11387698096732697805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12721167.post-50218611876723640292009-06-03T01:42:34.683-07:002009-06-03T01:42:34.683-07:00Susan, I think I know how you feel :( All my ca...Susan, I think I know how you feel :( All my cats were about the same age so they all got elderly and sick about the same time. Towards the end with Kermit, I pulled my mattress off the bed and slept with it on the livingroom floor to be close to her and help her use the litterbox at night.<br /><br />If Angel has kidney disease, giving her fluids (like I did with my cats) might make her feel better and live longer. I don't know if it's true for dogs, but sometimes cats meow a lot at night if they have hyperthyroidism - that's ofte fixable with a little pill.<br /><br />I'm sorry this is happening. I know it hurts a lot. Wish I could help.crystalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05681674503952991492noreply@blogger.com